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must ask is what is the community in community planning? And, in order to tackle that, we <br />really worked on understanding three important perspectives that needed to be balanced. Local <br />knowledge being the first one, and keeping the plan grounded in the community. Also <br />understanding the planner and developer knowledge to be sure that the plan would be <br />implementable and be practical. And, then using best practices of planning to be sure that it was <br />efficient and smooth. All the while staying anchored in an open process. It's more than just <br />meetings although we had lots of meetings. It's also focusing on an objective analysis and <br />understanding that everybody has a different perspective to bring to the table. <br />So, as I mentioned, we had a first round of community development plans, and we learned a lot <br />through them. And, so when we initiated Ka`u and Hamakua, we had lessons learned that we <br />wanted to be sure and implement, and one of them was understanding the process and also <br />understanding how to format the plan to be implementable. <br />The process that we set out to do was to be a credible process, to be highly participatory, <br />collaborative, strategic, and systematic. It also was important that there was thorough vetting by <br />the community, by the Steering Committee, and by agencies who would be helping us to <br />implement the plan. This all came from a consistent foundation based on the community's <br />objectives that were approved by the Steering Committee, fact -based analysis, and rational <br />engagement. <br />The Hamakua Community Development Plan planning area consists of Hamakua District, North <br />Hilo District, and a portion of the South Hilo District, and all of those lands in between. The <br />purpose of the CDP is to implement the broad goals of the General Plan into what the <br />community's specific needs are, to serve as a forum for community input on services, to direct <br />land use, to plan for natural resource protection, and to direct public improvements. <br />The Steering Committee, as I mentioned, are volunteer members who broadly represent the <br />planning area of Hamakua, and as a whole, speak from many different communities. We had <br />Waipi`o represented, Honoka`a, Pa`auilo, 'O`okala, North Hilo, Honomu, Pepe`ekeo, and <br />Papa`ikou were all represented by the Steering Committee members, and so they were able to <br />bring those different perspectives of the community together as one. <br />The Steering Committee is an advisory County committee advising the Planning Director to help <br />produce a high-quality community development plan for the people of Hamakua. Their role is to <br />work with the Planning Department and professional consultants to assist in tailoring the <br />planning process to the unique characteristics of our community and its stakeholders. The role is <br />also to promote the planning process within the various sectors of the community which they are <br />a part of and maximize participation. <br />Finally, the Steering Committee monitors the development of the community development plan <br />to ensure that the best interests of Hamakua as a whole are incorporated. Therefore, the primary <br />responsibility of the Steering Committee is to make sure the CDP truly reflects the will of the <br />Hamakua community. <br />EXHIBIT A <br />